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On Valour Drive between General Crear Crescent and Point Frederick Drive, on the grounds of the Royal Military College of Canada, County Road 2, Kingston
Commemoration
A naval arms limitation agreement negotiated to demilitarize the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain after the War of 1812, this convention was concluded between the United States and Great Britain represented respectively by Richard Rush and Charles Bagot in 1817. Under its terms each country agreed to dismantle all armed vessels on the lakes with the exception of four retained for policing purposes and to construct no new warships. During the 19th century there were occasional infractions of the terms and during the Second World War they were somewhat modified, but the spirit of the convention has, in general, never been violated. Still technically in force, the Rush-Bagot agreement has become a symbol of the longstanding peaceful relations between Canada and the United States.
Background
A peace agreement that has been respected for more than two centuries is very rare in this world. It is a key part of our undefended border between Canada and the United States. Fittingly, there is an historical marker for the treaty in Washington, D. C.
The agreement went into force on April 16, 1818 when it was ratified by the U. S. Congress. It was reconfirmed when Canada became an independent country in 1867. The treaty was worked out in letters between U.S. Secretary of State Richard Rush and British Minister to the U.S. Sir Charles Bagot.
After September 11, 2001, the U.S. Coast Guard armed Great Lakes vessels with machine guns which contravened the treaty. The Canadian government chose not to contest this and reserved the right to arm similar vessels in a similar manner, though it has not done so.
This treaty can be seen as a the first real step in changing the relationship across the Great Lakes from one of enmity in the 18th century to allies of today.
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